This invention relates to a connector and, in particular, to a connector of a high-frequency current suppressing type having a function of attenuating a high-frequency current passing through the connector during use.
In the field of electronic communication, electronic apparatuses and data processing apparatuses (hereinafter collectively referred to as xe2x80x9csystem componentsxe2x80x9d) are combined together to be operated as a system. In order to connect the system components to one another, a connector is used as a terminal component for connection. The connector comprises at least one contact for transmitting a signal processed in each system component, and an insulator holding the contact. The connector of the type is generally classified into a pin connector (which may be called a male connector) having a pin-shaped contact or a socket connector (which may be called a female connector) having a socket-shaped contact.
In recent years, use has widely been made of a multi-contact connector comprising a number of contacts. In order to enable transmission of a considerable number of signals corresponding to a signal processing system supporting complicated functions in those system components recently used, a general multi-contact connector is designed so that a number of contacts are arranged in the insulator at a high density with a predetermined space kept from one another.
In the system components recently used, various kinds of electronic components are mounted. For example, these electronic components may be semiconductor active devices including a semiconductor memory such as a random access memory (RAM) and a read-only memory (ROM), a semiconductor integrated circuit device (IC), a semiconductor large-scale integrated circuit device (LSI), and a logic circuit device such as a microprocessor (MPU), a central processing unit (CPU), and an image processor arithmetic logic unit (IPALU). The multi-contact connector transmits the signals including a harmonic content having a high frequency ranging from several tens MHz to several GHz and produced as a result of high-speed operation of the semiconductor active devices.
If a high-frequency current in such a frequency band between several tens MHz and several GHz flows through a conventional connector such as the above-mentioned multi-contact connector, this may result in radiation of an undesired electromagnetic wave and occurrence of various kinds of electromagnetic interference because of presence of discontinuity at a connecting portion.
Furthermore, the high-frequency current passing through the connector may become a factor of producing a high-frequency noise which adversely affects other electronic components or other system components. Therefore, such high-frequency current must be removed or suppressed. In existing connectors, however, consideration is not sufficiently made of the countermeasure against the high-frequency current. Therefore, it is difficult to prevent the production of the high-frequency noise.
It is therefore an object of this invention to provide a connector which is capable of considerably suppressing a high-frequency current as an undesired harmonic to prevent production of a high-frequency noise.
Other objects of the present invention will become clear as the description proceeds.
According to a general aspect of the present invention, there is provided a connector comprising an insulator, at least one contact held by the insulator, and a high-frequency current suppressor for attenuating a high-frequency current flowing through the at least one contact and having a frequency within a frequency band between several tens MHz and several GHz.
According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a connector comprising an insulator, at least one contact held by the insulator, and a high-frequency current suppressor for attenuating a high-frequency current flowing through the at least one contact and having a frequency within a frequency band between several tens MHz and several GHz, the high-frequency current suppressor being deposited on the insulator so as to shield the at least one contact when the connector is connected to a mating connector.
According to still another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a connector comprising an insulator, at least one contact held by the insulator, and a high-frequency current suppressor for attenuating a high-frequency current flowing through the at least one contact and having a frequency within a frequency band between several tens MHz and several GHz, the high-frequency current suppressor being deposited on the at least one contact so as to shield the at least one contact.
According to yet another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a connector comprising an insulator, at least one contact held by the insulator, and a high-frequency current suppressor for attenuating a high-frequency current flowing through the at least one contact and having a frequency within a frequency band between several tens MHz and several GHz, the high-frequency current suppressor being interposed between the insulator and the at least one contact so as to shield the at least one contact.
According to a further aspect of the present invention, there is provided a connector comprising an insulator, at least one contact held by the insulator, and a high-frequency current suppressor for attenuating a high-frequency current flowing through the at least one contact and having a frequency within a frequency band between several tens MHz and several GHz, the high-frequency current suppressor being made of a magnetic substance of a magnetic composition comprising M, X and Y, where M is a metallic magnetic material consisting of Fe, Co, and/or Ni, X being element or elements other than M and Y, and Y being F, N, and/or O, the Mxe2x80x94Xxe2x80x94Y magnetic composition having a concentration of M in the composition so that the Mxe2x80x94Xxe2x80x94Y magnetic composition has a saturation magnetization of 35-80% of that of the metallic bulk of magnetic material comprising M alone, the magnetic composition having the maximum value xcexcxe2x80x3max of an imaginary part xcexcxe2x80x3 of relative permeability in a frequency range of 0.1-10 gigahertz (GHz).